Madonna and Child, 1522–1526
SAVANNAH, GA, Oct. 08, 2026 (GLOBE NEWSWIRE) — Telfair Museums will present “Michelangelo’s Women: Images of Female Power and Divinity from the Casa Buonarroti,” on view Oct. 9, 2026, through Jan. 24, 2027, at the Jepson Center, 207 W. York St., Savannah. This groundbreaking exhibition is the first to focus exclusively on the women who inspired, appeared in and helped preserve the legacy of one of history’s greatest artists.
Tickets for the opening reception and lecture on Oct. 8 have already sold out, but there’s still time to reserve your spot for the educational and entertaining programs accompanying the exhibition. The lineup includes the Free Family Day on Oct. 24, a lecture by Dr. Emily Fenichel on Nov. 12, and “Music of Michelangelo’s World: A Performance by the Savannah Consort” on Dec. 11.
Renaissance sculptor, painter, architect, and renowned poet Michelangelo Buonarroti (1475-1564) loved women, not as objects of physical desire but as fully realized, powerful, heroic figures, equal to and sometimes superior to men. Women appear everywhere in his work, from the Sistine Chapel to his famous Pietà, the marble sculpture of Mary cradling the body of Jesus after he has been removed from the cross. Curiously, no book or exhibition has ever been devoted exclusively to Michelangelo’s women. Casual observers usually dismiss them as overly muscular and long-limbed. This exhibition argues, however, that there were many reasons that Michelangelo imagined these women as superheroes.
Drawn from the historic collections of the artist’s own family, “Michelangelo’s Women” will use his drawings, poetry, and letters, some never before seen in the United States, to encourage visitors to think about the ways that Michelangelo looked at women and what women saw in his works. It will also introduce visitors to patron and muse Vittoria Colonna (1492–1547) and preservationist Rosina Vendramin (1814–1856), women who supported Michelangelo and maintained his legacy. Reproductions of the Sistine Chapel ceiling and his fresco, “Last Judgment,” will allow visitors to have new, close studies of the women the artist included in his most famous works.
“This exhibition invites audiences to look beyond familiar masterpieces and discover an entirely new way of understanding Michelangelo’s work,” said Elyse Gerstenecker, PhD, Telfair Museums Director of Curatorial Affairs & Curator of Decorative Arts. “By placing women at the center of the story, visitors will gain fresh insight into Michelangelo’s artistic vision, the remarkable women who influenced his life and legacy, and the enduring relevance of these powerful figures more than 500 years later.”
The exhibition is organized by Telfair Museums and the Casa Buonarroti Firenze and curated by guest curator Dr. Gary Radke, a leading scholar of Renaissance art.
ADDITIONAL EXHIBITION – “REMEMBER THE LADIES: WOMEN WHO MADE TELFAIR”
An accompanying exhibition, “Remember the Ladies: Women Who Made Telfair,” will also be on view Oct. 9, 2026, through Jan. 24, 2027, at the Jepson Center. The exhibition honors just a few of the many significant women who have impacted Telfair Museums with a new examination of their important contributions. This exhibition is organized by Telfair Museums and curated by Dr. Elyse D. Gerstenecker, Director of Curatorial Affairs & Curator of Decorative Arts, with contributions by Erin Dunn and Ahmauri Williams-Alford, Telfair Museums curators; Lori Gascon, Gibson Hartman, and Miranda Wright, Telfair Museums interpretive guides; Dr. Shawnya Harris, Georgia Museum of Art; Tania Sammons, Ships of the Sea Maritime Museum; and Rachel Waldrop, Lamar Dodd School of Art, University of Georgia.
For museum hours, admission information and tickets, visit Telfair.org.
– ENDS –
For media inquiries and interviews, please contact Kristyn Beasley at [email protected], Genelle Williams at [email protected], Lesley Francis at [email protected], or the team at 912-417-LFPR (5377).
About Telfair Museums
Opening in 1886, Telfair Museums is the oldest public art museum in the South and the first U.S. Museum founded by a woman. The museum features a world-class art collection in the heart of Savannah’s National Historic Landmark District and encompasses three sites: the Jepson Center for the Arts, the Owens-Thomas House & Slave Quarters, and the Telfair Academy. For more information on Telfair Museums, please visit www.telfair.org.
Attachment
- Madonna and Child, 1522–1526
CONTACT: Lesley Francis Lesley Francis PR [email protected]
